Zutara Week 2011
by Kaze no Ato
Summary: A series of one shots for Zutara week! Prompts are: Mask, History, Social Network, Secret, Awkward, Legend and Caught. Happy Zutara week.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender of any of its respective characters.

Zutara Week '11

Day 1: Mask

Somewhere in the world, there must be an unspoken rule. This rule requires beings to don masks at a certain age to maintain appearances for society. Children have no such masks; they simply do not care for propriety or pretentious mannerisms. At galas such as the one currently being held, masks are held much tighter than normal. Behind those firmly held masks lurks a tension thicker than a dragon's hide. This night no one is has a firmer hold on his or her mask than Firelord Zuko does. He laughs, smiles and feigns interest. He wishes to be anywhere but here.

A young woman in blue robes walks by on the arm of Avatar Aang and for an instant his mask slips, pain reaching his eyes. The woman has been struggling the night to keep her mask in place. Her smiles never quite made it to her eyes. Tears were pooling in those oceanic eyes before her hand dashed them away. Her hands had become to used to dashing tears away. The couple stops to converse with a regal looking man, who has news concerning some obscure town in the Earth Kingdom. The Katara's mind drifts miles away.

Avatar Aang knows Katara is here for no more than the sake of appearance. Their relationship ended nearly a year ago, though even now they were sure no one knew. The Earth Kingdom official was now commenting on how lovely the two of them were looking together, how wonderful that they had found true love at such a young age. Aang winces internally at just how wrong the man was. There was nothing he could do to change the situation, Katara was holding all the Pai Sho tiles and had withdrawn from the game.

Katara excuses herself, saying she is not accustomed to the heat of the Fire Nation after having been away from the country for so long, and leaves. Her steps are the proper, small steps befitting a lady until she rounds the corner into the hall. She removes the silken slippers from her feet and sprints away from the gala. Katara passes startled guards as quickly as she can but knows that at least one had seen the tears glistening on her cheeks. Her feet slow as she reaches her destination – the Turtleduck pond Zuko had once showed off to her proudly. Crumpling like a rag doll she found herself kneeling by the pond, sobbing silently in the moonlight.

Several guards had indeed seen the tears upon the normally strong Waterbender's face; one brave soul went running to inform his Lord of the sighting. Firelord Zuko catches the eye of the guard as he enters the banquet hall. He excuses himself from the men he had been talking (listening) to. The guard relays his message quickly, quietly. Zuko asks the man the direction she had been heading; the guard informs him but does not know where she ended up. Zuko knows and thanks the man. He slips away, amazing at how easily he does.

He finds her, shoulders shaking as her body tries to keep the sobs internalized, exactly where he knew she was. The mask he so tightly held to slips away, concern and sympathy etching themselves on his previously false features. Zuko's footsteps were muffled as he was moving toward her. Seconds passing into eternity as her eyes rose to meet his. She is beautiful, even as she cries with the moon reflecting off the pools in her eyes. Her resolve breaks and she lets a sob escape her lips for the first time. Katara feels his arms around her in that instant, and she pours her heart out to him on the spot. Everything that had been troubling her was now laid bare. He does not judge her, for he himself has been wearing a mask to appease the masses.

That night neither Zuko nor Katara made their way to their respective rooms. They sat staring up at the sky until it lightened with the dawn. It was a new day, but for that night they were as children – with no masks to hide their feelings.

With the new day changes were arriving. Katara was no longer willing to be some trophy upon Aang's arm just to please the people around them. Firelord Zuko was calmly saying to a scholar he did not care to know the scholar's theory as to how belching was akin to opening one's chakras. Aang felt his ever-present smile falling away, revealing eyes that were far older than his young years and a tired feeling he could no longer keep pushing down.

They were no longer the kids who had miraculously defeated Phoenix King Ozai and brought about peace. They were now young adults showing that they had seen too much pain, suffering and death in their short lives. As children they were forced to grow far too quickly, so their unmasked feelings were being bared to the world. It was relieving for them all.

Zuko was currently deciding to take Katara on a tour of the city. Imagining the two of them in disguises, meandering their way from stall to stall without a care. He sought her out, finding her quickly and divulging his plans for the day. Katara was smiling at him before he even finished explaining. It was an impulsive act, something like they would have done before ending the war. It was not as extravagant as watching a play about themselves or something as thrilling as hiding right beneath Ozai's nose before they defeated him. However it was something Katara found herself enjoying. The most important thing for Zuko was seeing her smile, and smiling himself. Despite their disguises, they were no longer wearing masks. Holding tightly to Zuko's hand, Katara vowed to herself – She would fight against the mask society deems that she wear. Now and always.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender of any of its respective characters.

Zutara Week '11

Day 2: History

"History is much like an endless waltz; the three beats of war, peace and revolution continue on forever." – Mariemaia Khushrenada [Gundam W: Endless Waltz]

A small group huddled around a fire pit, their encampment silent. They dared not speak as they spooned thin soup into their mouths. After just a few short years of peace, the world had once again been thrown into strife. Ozai had supports hidden within major cities in the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom, supporters who had simultaneously committed assassinations of the highest-ranking figures. Firelord Zuko had barely escaped alive. If Katara hadn't been visiting him the day the assassination attempt was made, Zuko would have surely died. They had fled that night as fast as Zuko's injuries would allow them to go. Even with Katara's healing he had spent a week recovering in a house owned by a White Lotus member. The day Zuko finally emerged from his room on his own, he found Katara and Aang in a heated argument. She blamed Aang for this so-called revolution by Ozai. If he had killed him instead of just taking away his bending, she yelled, a new war wouldn't be on the cusp of starting. Aang argued and Katara yelled more, and soon the Avatar stormed away. That had been almost a year ago. Katara and Zuko had been initiated into the White Lotus, their job being quick strikes to take out key players in Ozai's army. The week before they had received a new mission from Piandao. The small group around the fire was not their target. No, the man that was to arrive within the hour was their target. He was a field general whose job has been to gather the small groups to create a bigger battalion.

They had decided to take the man before he reached the small group to avoid unnecessary battles. They had gathered as much information on the man as they could in a week's time. The man was named Xian Whu. He was a Firebender of some skill; he was in his mid thirties whose only family was a brother currently residing on Ember Island. Xian Whu was a mercenary by trade, a heartless killer-for-hire who held his men in check with threats and pain. The two benders waited. Both tensed at the sound of confident footsteps, Xian Whu obviously didn't expect enemies in this territory. How surprised he was when a vine wrapped itself around his right foot as if on its own. Xian Whu's eyes traveled to the vine as Zuko burst from the bushes with a well-placed kick to Xian Whu's kidney. A grunt of pain escaped from Xian Whu as he whipped his head around to see his attacker. With his attention turned to Zuko, Katara rushed from her hiding place to deliver a hard blow to the back of Xian Whu's knee. A backhand from Zuko sent the man to the ground and Katara knocked him out with a blow to his exposed neck.

Zuko bound and gagged the man. He and Katara dragged him away without the group knowing the man was even nearing their encampment. It wasn't the first time they had done something of this sort, bringing a man back to one of the White Lotus bases to be interrogated. It most certainly wouldn't be the last, either. They would keep picking off Ozai's men until the time when one of those men broke and revealed to them the location of Zuko's father. There would be no mistakes this time; they would kill the man. If it would mean peace for the world again, Zuko would willingly be the one to bloody his hands. It was Zuko's desire that history not repeat itself, however it felt that as long as there were humans in this world there would always be a war to fight.

Katara settled into a cot in the room she shared with Zuko. They were often given temporary beds at the various White Lotus bases they happened to be closest to before they set out on their next mission. She unbraided her hair with practiced ease, running her fingers to remove any knots. She had lost her bone comb on the road during one of their outings and hadn't quite had the time to replace it. Katara began to undo her black robe, one similar to what she had worn when she and Zuko had gone after Yan Rha. Zuko pushed open the door to their quarters without a knock. Not that Katara cared. The last year they had both seen each other in various stages of undress and had gone past the stage of embarrassment. Katara studied Zuko's face and noticed just how tired he was looking these days. He was awake more often than he slept, and it worried her. Zuko noticed her scrutiny and gave her a smile in attempt to reassure her. She let her hands fall from undoing her robe and she made her way to where Zuko's cot sat. Her arms snaked around his waist as she hugged him from behind, her cheek resting against his muscled back. He relaxed at her touch, shoulders sagging as if they carried the weight of the world on them. If one stopped to think, peace for the world was riding on the shoulders of their small victories. Each soldier they captured brought them one step closer to defeating Ozai. Katara hadn't realized she had started to cry until she felt the cloth of Zuko's robe become damp. Despite being in the middle of what was threatening to be another large-scale war, the blue-eyed young woman had come to a conclusion.

"I love you." She whispered, listening to the beat of Zuko's heart.

"I love you too, Katara." Zuko replied and his voice was rough with raw emotion.

For that moment they had found a bit of peace, their own tiny world tucked away from the harshness of reality. Perhaps years from now, in the annals of history this moment would stand out for someone as much as it did for them.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender of any of its respective characters. I also do not own Facebook, or World of Warcraft.

Zutara Week '11

Day 3: Social Networking

Zuko Asahi knew he should be at work on the research paper that was due in four days, or some other piece of homework he had been neglecting for the last three hours. Somehow he had found World of Warcraft much more entertaining than his homework, if one could believe that. Facebook and the amusing statuses of his friends were currently holding his attention. Apparently Sokka had ended up in the ER with two fishhooks in his thumb. Ty Lee was once again threatening to run away to the circus to get away from her sisters. Really, who seriously threatened to run away to the circus nowadays? His uncle had sent him an event invitation, celebrating his teashop's one-year anniversary. Random game requests were promptly ignored. Zuko really didn't care about farms, cities, cafes or whatever else people spent their free time on. He stared blankly at the homepage when a new notice popped up on the news feed.

_Katara Watters is now single._

Huh. He was her best friend and he had to find out through Facebook. Honestly, Zuko was surprised her relationship with Jet had even lasted this long. How Katara had not seen past the smooth-talking exterior was beyond Zuko. Usually she was sharper than that. He spotted that she was online for chat and he asked her if she was all right. She replied that she would be fine. Would be, being the key words. He asked if he needed to come over, she said no. Katara didn't want to talk about whatever had happened to cause the sudden breakup. From experience he knew to leave well enough alone for now. She'd talk when she was ready and not a moment before. He reminded her that he was there for her, when she wanted to talk. She thanked him, said she was going to go read. Oh, and that he needed to get off Facebook and do his homework. Damn it.

Katara put on a brave face for school the following day. Zuko had easily seen through the façade that most of the student body didn't bother to look beneath. She had hugged him tighter than was normal when they parted for their first classes. During English she sighed a lot. She said nothing during lunch, where she would always comment on her brother and his sloppy table manners. Zuko wondered how long she was going to be like this. It turned out to be two weeks before she spoke of what Jet had done to make her break things off with him. The day after that, Jet had shown up to school sporting a black eye and a split lip. Jet wouldn't admit who had given his new facial accessories to him, but they knew by the glares Zuko sent his way just who had done the damage. Zuko's wall was plastered with comments about why he had "decorated Jet's face," as Haru had so eloquently put it. Zuko updated his status. _It had to do with Katara and Jet's break up, other than that I won't say. _Sokka commented on how it was an improvement to Jet's features. Zuko got a chuckle out of that one.

Months had passed since "The Incident." Those were Katara's words, not his. Zuko called it the day he punched out Jet for being a douche. Things at school had settled down, Jet avoided Zuko like the plague. Katara joked and laughed; Zuko joked back. All in all, things seemed to be returning to normal. No one really suspected anything, not the growing feelings Katara held for Zuko or the fact that Zuko had had feelings for Katara far longer than he cared to admit. Then came the Sadie Hawkins Dance. Katara wanted to go, to have some fun after months of doing nothing out of the ordinary. Zuko had been asked to the dance by several girls by the time lunch had come about. He had graciously declined in most cases; told one girl to stop being a creeper and go away. Katara munched on her homemade pasta salad as Zuko slid onto the bench next to her with his lunch tray, scooting his banana pudding toward her. Katara thanked him and asked him to the dance in the same breath. Zuko said yes. They had gone to a dance as friends before, why should this one be different? Right? _Riiiiiight._

Katara had some managed to rope Zuko into dress shopping with her. Sure, the dance was only semi-formal, but Katara wanted his opinion. Sokka tagged along to make sure his sister was dressed appropriately. The saleswoman gushed over the dresses Katara brought to the dressing room. Zuko and Sokka looked bored. Katara entered the dressing room, and the saleswoman practically pounced upon Zuko. She commented on how cute it was that he was dress shopping with his girlfriend. After Sokka laughed for several minutes, Zuko calmly told her that she was mistaken and he was merely her best friend. Sokka laughed harder when the saleswoman asked him if he was gay. Katara walked out of the dressing room in a dark blue, knee-length dress that was cinched in an empire waist with a white bow. Zuko's brain became disconnected from his mouth and the words _that one_ flew from his mouth without restraint. Zuko mentally face-palmed himself. It was going to be a long week until the dance if his mouth kept that up.

The dance went off without a hitch. A cute girl with auburn hair and pretty eyes had asked Sokka, Suki was her name if Katara remembered right. Zuko complained about his lack of dancing skills. Katara called him a liar and made him dance anyway. The night turned out to be fun for the pair, and Zuko thought about how good it was just to see Katara smiling like that again. They left before the dance ended; they wanted to avoid the traffic jam of dozens of high school students leaving the parking lot. Zuko walked Katara to her door like a gentleman. He stuttered out a question, as she was about to enter her home. It took her a moment to puzzle out the string of jumbled words before she realized he had asked her to be his girlfriend. She kissed his cheek and shut the door without giving a proper answer. Zuko, dumbfounded, drove himself back home. He quickly logged onto his Facebook account.

_Katara Watters is now in a relationship with Zuko Asah_i.

The wonders of social networking.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender of any of its respective characters.

Zutara Week '11

Day 4: Secret

We all hold secrets within our selves. Small ones or large, it makes no difference. The fact of the matter is that we never truly bare our souls completely to another person. That would leave us vulnerable; to have someone know every single thought, feeling, or happening in our lives. One of my secrets would change the way the people who I know would perceive me. I wanted to kill Yan Rha, wanted it more than I have ever wanted something in all my years. I didn't kill him not because I pitied him; it was because I didn't want someone else to see me kill him. Somehow I think Zuko knows this, I saw sympathy in his eyes when I walked away. He understands me more than Aang ever did; he's felt the same things that I've felt. I admire him for how strong he is and how he can continue to live life with such confidence. There are times when I cry at night when no one is around. I think Zuko suspected that I cried at night. He gave a stuffed polar bear dog as a gift. He told me that it was for when I felt lonely. I've never hugged him tighter than I had that day. It seems like he just knows.

My relationship with Aang had disintegrated within a year and a half after the end of the war. To be honest, I was grateful. I didn't love him. Who in their right mind could claim to be in love at the age of fifteen? He was only thirteen and talking of marriage. It frightened me. I had tasted freedom and seen the world in helping Aang to master the elements and I wasn't ready to give that freedom up just yet. That was why the South Pole no longer felt like home. It had grown since the war ended. Some of the Northern Water Tribe members had moved to join with their sister city. It was culture clash at first and I heard the whispers, wondering why I wasn't married yet, from the Northerners. It angered me, and my bending had lashed out for me. I hadn't lost control like that since before I had become a master. I felt embarrassed to be scolded by my father with the entire village to hear, like some child that had been naughty. I had refused to apologize, telling my father that if the Northerners couldn't handle the difference in culture than they should move themselves back to their sexist Northern Tribe. Gran-Gran had given me a nod of approval, and I thought I saw a bit of wistful remembrance in Master Pakku's eyes. I have a bit of Gran-Gran's attitude in me.

After that incident I traveled the Earth Kingdom for a while. I visited Toph in Gaoling for several months before heading to Ba Sing Se. I stayed with Zuko's uncle Iroh; I enjoyed my time working in his teashop. I can see where Zuko gets his ability to just know things, because Iroh is even keener at it than he is. Somehow he managed to talk me into visiting Zuko, so that is where I currently am. The Fire Nation truly is beautiful.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I am glad that Katara decided to visit. To tell the truth I enjoy her company far more than anyone else's. Mai hadn't been too pleased when Katara had shown up, but when is that woman ever pleased? A little secret: If I didn't want to add stress of a knife-wielding ex-girlfriend at the moment, the two of us wouldn't be together. She's never been the touchy feel-y type, but lately it's been worse. Her brief kisses are cold and distant, so why doesn't she just end it already? I'm far too stressed right now. Another reason I am glad for Katara's presence. Perhaps it's because her element is water, but she has a calming effect on me. She is a pleasant distraction and so much more. I find myself watching her, not in the stalker-like creepy way, but really appreciating her natural beauty for what it is. Katara is real, grounded.

One of my greatest secrets is that I would never lay my life on the line for Mai. I know that she risked much to save me that time Sokka and I went to the Boiling Rock, but her uncle was the warden. Other than from Azula, was she truly in danger? She had Ty Lee to back her up, someone far more dangerous than she looks. I didn't even hesitate to take a lightning bolt for Katara. No question, she was far more important than I was. If I had the chance to change anything from that, I wouldn't have taunted Azula into using her lightning. Not because I'm a coward, but in doing so I put Katara in danger. My whole reason for the Agni Kai was to keep Katara safe. I needed her to be safe. To this day I'm still not sure exactly what my feelings for her are. I know that I do feel something for her. I was completely honest with Sokka when I told him that I cared about what Katara thought of me. Other than my uncle, I have never wanted someone's approval more.

She and I are currently eating a small lunch by the turtle duck pond, providing a much-needed distraction from the monotonous paperwork. She had just finished her recounting the culture clash, as she calls it, and the scolding she received from her father. I'm not afraid to admit that my respect for Hakoda diminished at that. Katara talked about the other places she would like to visit while she was in the Fire Nation; Ember Island, maybe take a trip to visit Master Piandao. I wanted her to stay here. Her eyes went wide, and it struck me that I had said those words aloud. I hadn't meant to voice my desire to have her near me. She smiled at me.

_"Then maybe I'll stay here for a while…"_


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender of any of its respective characters, nor do I own Resident Evil 5.

Sorry I didn't post the remaining chapters right away. I blame it on the fact that I'm an adult and have to work. Lol.

Zutara Week '11

Day 5: Awkward

To say this situation wasn't awkward would be so completely off the mark that you'd be in outer space. It was something totally innocent, and we really tried to explain that to Sokka. My brother wasn't buying it, if the look on his face was any inclination. Perhaps I should describe what Sokka is seeing and you can jump to conclusions yourself. Here I am, straddling my best friend Zuko, on my bed. Yup, you can see how bad this looks. Now I'm going to have to explain to you how we ended up in this…compromising position.

I met up with Zuko in our normal place after class so that I can catch a ride home with him. We both had writing projects due at the end of the week and, as I already had completed mine over the weekend; I offered to help Zuko because writing is definitely not his strong point. We often went to one or the other's house to do homework; it has been a ritual since middle school. We've been best friends for five years now; we even managed to avoid the awkwardness freaking each other out while going through puberty. He didn't even freak out the first time I had gotten my period. He paled greatly, but he soldiered through it. Thoroughly impressive for a barely-teenage-boy, let me tell you. Sokka fainted.

I climbed into Zuko's old Chevy pickup; we were joking and laughing like usual. The ride to my house wasn't overly long, but the dread of a writing project seemed to make Zuko drive slower than normal. I teased him about it, and he just grumbled. I love making fun of him, but I knew that he'd get me back sooner or later… and you know what they say about paybacks. Oh well, it was too much fun to worry about that right now. He parked at the curb in front of our house, knowing that we would likely be more than a few hours working on the project, leaving the driveway open for my dad when he got home. Sokka was already home, Mondays being the days he only had two periods in the morning. I motioned Zuko up to my room while I made a detour to get a couple of sodas for us in the kitchen. Sokka waved to me from the living room, where he was sitting on his butt playing Resident Evil 5.

The first hour was difficult, because we had to come up with something for Zuko to actually write about, something he should've done last week. We settled on a topic as we polished off our sodas and he ran down to get more. I looked at his handwriting, it was horrendous. Thank God his English teacher preferred having things typed up instead of written out. I didn't hear Zuko enter the room, he has this uncanny ability to be as silent as the grave when he wants to be. He pressed the cold soda can against the base of my neck, causing me to jump. I gave him the worst glare I could. I launched myself at him and we started to tussle, all in good fun. We tripped and fought to keep our balance. I took advantage of the situation and began to tickle him mercilessly. Zuko is extremely ticklish, something he had told me years ago and I took advantage of that every chance I could get. We ended up on the bed, and I ended up sitting on his stomach. Zuko says I get an evil glint in my eye when I'm about to go after his most ticklish spot, which accounted for the fearful look in Zuko's eyes. I reached under his shirt and began to tickle his ribs. He yelped—a higher pitch than I had heard since his voice had changed. I laughed all the harder.

And that is when Sokka showed up. Zuko had left the door open in an attempt to be sneakier, so Sokka had an easy view of the situation. We tried to tell him what was actually going on, that I was simply tickling Zuko as a torture for the cold soda can on my neck. Like I said before, he didn't believe us. Sokka shook his head, looking as if he was in a daze and simply left the room. Zuko and I looked at each other.

"Well, that was awkward."


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender of any of its respective characters.

Zutara Week '11

Day 6: Legend

There were people that simply did not believe that the hundred year war had been ended by a group of children, even if one of the children had been the Avatar. The feats they performed were legendary, something children could never accomplish, in their eyes. High ranking officials attended the first anniversary of the war's end; many of them stared at Team Avatar. Sokka was recounting their practices against the Melon Lord, earning laughs from some of the less stiff officials. Sokka waved Zuko and Katara over to him.

"These two made up what I like to call our 'liquidy-hot offense.' You wouldn't believe how in sync these two are. It's like they are two halves of the same whole. You know that yin-yang thing?" Sokka blabbed, "I'm telling you, if those two ever hooked up their kids would kick some serious butt."

It was then that Katara and Zuko realized that Sokka was drunk. Katara took a page from her brother's book and face-palmed. Zuko looked mortified, mostly because he had fantasized about the same thing a time or two. Zuko frantically looked for Suki and found her talking with Ty Lee. He made a beeline for the girls, earning himself a glare from Katara who thought he was abandoning her.

"You'll have to excuse my brother; he doesn't hold his liquor well." Katara apologized to the officials, a blush on her face as her brother continued to rant on about what he thought she and Zuko's kids might be like. She tried to lead him away, her idea being to rendezvous with Zuko now that she realized he hadn't abandoned her and was trying to get Suki.

Zuko reached Suki and Ty Lee when he heard Toph's raucous laughter. His eyes were drawn to the direction of her outburst and saw none other than the bounty hunter Jun. How had she got an invitation? His uncle was the most likely culprit. He explained the situation to Suki, waited for her to finish laughing, and dragged her to Sokka. Zuko felt nervous, he hadn't seen his girlfriend for some time. Where was Mai? As if Sokka's big mouth wasn't bad enough, he had lost his girlfriend. Katara sent him a thankful glance as Zuko presented Suki to her brother. However, Katara's gaze slipped past him. He turned to look over his shoulder and saw Toph and Jun standing behind him. Toph smiled sinisterly, Jun looked highly amused.

"So, did you make up with your girlfriend yet?" Jun asked sweetly, her eyes flickering to Katara.

"She's not my girlfriend."

"I'm not his girlfriend."

Toph cackled, and the world seemed to focus on them. "Seriously, by now my powers of observation should be legend. Why did your heartbeat pick up, Zuko?"

"B-because I have no idea where Mai is! And I do not want to find myself doing an impression of a pincushion." Zuko whispered urgently.

"Uh huh. Somehow I'm not sure that's the entire truth." Toph replied mercilessly, "What? Don't want Sokka to know you have the hots for his sister?"

Silence. Sokka's drunk brain was analyzing what Toph had just said. Katara's eyes darted around the room, looking for Mai and Aang. Why weren't they here? Both of them should be here. It clicked. Jun and her shirshu most likely had something to do with the absence of Mai and Aang. She and Toph had plotted this. Perhaps there was someone else involved. Iroh was grinning far too much over there to be completely innocent. Had he been that close to them before? Katara doubted, as he seemed to be attempting to inconspicuously make his way toward them.

Sokka started sputtering, his thoughts finally beginning to connect with his mouth. "You like my sister?" He asked after trying several times to get the words out.

"No." Zuko said calmly.

"I can tell you're lying." Toph said in her sing-song voice.

Iroh erupted in laughter. Katara blushed as she looked at Zuko, the Fire Lord looking like he wanted to crawl into a hole and die. People were watching them intently. Iroh put his arm around his nephew when he finally reached him, and then pulled Katara under his other arm.

"You see, my dear Katara. I had to do something, or else my shy nephew would never have confessed." Iroh explained.

"I haven't confessed anything, uncle." Zuko hissed.

"Nephew, come now," Iroh admonished, "Don't tell me that you could be so heartless as to say that you haven't thought Katara was beautiful at one time or another."

"Uncle, I swear that I will burn down your tea shop."

Sokka looked confused. Was Iroh, the legend known as the Dragon of the West, trying to set his sister up with Zuko? Both of them were in separate relationships. Mai was no good for Zuko, he needed someone more lively. Katara was lively! Sokka nodded to himself, causing Suki to look at him worriedly. Aang was far too childish for Katara, she practically mothered him in their relationship. Yeah, she needed someone older. Zuko was older than Katara!

"I've decided!" Sokka announced, everyone looking at him as if he had grown another head. "What? Anyway, I have decided that Katara and Zuko should get together. I mean, liquidy-hot offense. We can call them… ZUTARA! Yeah, Zutara. I'm fully Team Zutara."

Katara twitched, vowing never to let Sokka get near liquor again. Zuko was analyzing how exactly he would burn down the Jasmine Dragon without starting another war. Katara would never admit it, but if she hadn't been against Zuko at the time the line "I'll save you from the pirates" might have been sexy. Zuko remembered that the first time Jun had called Katara his girlfriend he hadn't corrected her.

Jun patted Toph on the shoulder. The two of them would become legend in their own rights, being two of the three that had managed to bring Zuko and Katara together. Everyone had learned a lesson, at least. Never let Jun. Toph and Iroh plot anything.


End file.
